05.07.90TOURING CARS:- Former double touring car champion Chris Hodgetts from Redditch has been confirmed as the driver of the second Vauxhall Cavalier GSi 16v for the British Touring Car Championship race supporting the British Grand Prix.
06.07.90F.RENAULT:- Brazilian Thomas Erdos hopes to tighten his grip on the Formula Renault UK championship when he goes for his third win of the season in Sunday's seventh round at Donington Park. Orpington's Chris Goodwin, and fellow Van Diemen driver Paulo Carcassi are likely to be his main challengers.
RENAULT 5:- Jim Edwards jnr hopes it will be third time lucky in the Renault 5 Elf UK class on Sunday. He heads the standings but finished second on both previous visits to Donington this season.
09.07.90AUTOGLASS TOUR RALLY:- The second Autoglass Tour is in danger of being cancelled unless competitors place entries without delay, according to British Racing and Sports Car Club organisers. Closing date for the seven day event in September is July 31.
12.07.90 - F1:- THE BRITISH GRAND PRIXJOHN WATSON ON THE BRITISH G.P.
Two successive wins for Ferrari and Nigel Mansell's stunning testing times leave us with the exciting prospect of a hat-trick, with Mansell at the wheel. Mansell's pole position in Paul Ricard at last weekend's French Grand Prix is a foretaste of what he will expect to do as he starts his bid at Silverstone. An even bigger boost to Nigel will be the crowd's support which each year has an intangible and immeasurable effect - it provides an invisible motivation. Nowhere in the world have I seen this phenomenon illustrated so graphically.
The Leyton House Judds of Ivan Capelli and Mauricio Gugelmin were the sensation of the French Grand Prix. Their intelligent race strategy almost brought them victory. Is it possible to have a repeat performance on Sunday? The nature of the circuit with its very fast corners will suit the chassis which proved in Paul Ricard to be a match for anything else out there. They may find themselves at a slight disadvantage in the horsepower stakes - an important factor here - but what a great fillip Paul Ricard will have been.
This is the last time that the famous Silverstone circuit will be used for a Formula One race in its present form. After the 1990 GP major reconstruction will begin on three of its best known corners - Becketts, Stowe and Club. Anyone who appreciates GP racing should make a visit to Stowe and Club for a last chance to watch something which, in my opinion, defies belief. The sheer speed of the cars around these two corners has been, for many years, one of the most enthralling spectacles of Formula One racing.
Throughout the 1990 season my vote has always fallen with the McLaren-Honda team for the cars' superb consistency, performance and reliability. Now, in mid-season, the team is coming under much greater pressure and even the brilliance of Senna and Berger has failed to interrupt the momentum being generated by the Ferrari team. McLaren acknowledge that Silverstone will be a difficult race for them, due to the nature of the circuit. During recent testing they spent most of the time running in race set-up in a bid to improve their race performances.
Ferrari's recent success and the challenge of the Leyton House Judds in the last round have added a whole new dimension to Formula One racing. For the first time in several years it has become very competitive at the top level. Suddenly owning a Honda engine is no longer a guarantee of success. Tyre choice played a part at Ricard last weekend just as anticipated with the weather turning out to be very hot. The long term forecast is for a very hot spell here in England and, if this turns out to be accurate, tyres will also play a part in Sunday's result.
A Ferrari v McLaren battle is expected but the other two top teams, Williams and Benetton, should also be very strong runners at Silverstone. Benetton hope to have the latest development Ford engine for this very important race weekend and, on a high speed circuit like this one, will be glad of the additional 20 horsepower. But most eyes will be on Nigel Mansell chasing a Ferrari hat-trick. Boosted by that magic ingredient - people power - is it too much to expect that the British driver will fulfil the expectations of the 100,000 race fans?
More on The British G.P.
The British Grand Prix is the last chance for the smaller teams to avoid the nightmare of pre-qualifying. Formula One grids are over-subscribed forcing organisers to introduce pre-qualifying - 'qualifying for the right to take part in qualifying'. Silverstone is the last chance to earn points and avoid that ignominy for the rest of the season. Dallara will hold onto the 13th and final qualifying place unless Eurobrun, AGS, Coloni or Ligier score points.
The European newspaper has announced a $1 million sponsorship deal of the Benetton team for the remaining seven European rounds of the Formula One World Championship.
British G.P. Hall of Fame
1950 G Farina It Alfa Romeo Silverstone 1951 JF Gonzales Arg Ferrari Silverstone 1952 A Ascari It Ferrari Silverstone 1953 A Ascari It Ferrari Silverstone 1954 F Gonzales Arg Ferrari Silverstone 1955 S Moss GB Mercedes-B Aintree 1956 JM Fangio Arg Lancia-Ferr Silverstone 1957 S Moss & GB Vanwall Aintree T Brooks 1958 P Collins GB Ferrari Silverstone 1959 J Brabham Aus Cooper-C Aintree 1960 J Brabham Aus Cooper-C Silverstone 1961 W von Trips WG Ferrari Aintree 1962 J Clark GB Lotus-C Aintree 1963 J Clark GB Lotus-C Silverstone 1964 J Clark GB Lotus-C Brands Hatch 1965 J Clark GB Lotus-C Silverstone 1966 J Brabham Aus Brabham-R Brands Hatch 1967 J Clark GB Lotus-F Silverstone 1968 J Siffert Swi Lotus-F Brands Hatch 1969 J Stewart GB Matra-F Silverstone 1970 J Rindt Aut Lotus-F Brands Hatch 1971 J Stewart GB Tyrrell-F Silverstone 1972 E Fittipaldi Brz Lotus-F Brands Hatch 1973 P Revson US McLaren-F Silverstone 1974 J Scheckter SA Tyrrell-F Brands Hatch 1975 E Fittipaldi Brz McLaren-F Silverstone 1976 N Lauda Aut Ferrari Brands Hatch 1977 J Hunt GB McLaren-F Silverstone 1978 C Reutemann Arg Ferrari Brands Hatch 1979 C Regazzoni Swi Williams-F Silverstone 1980 A Jones Aus Williams-F Brands Hatch 1981 J Watson GB McLaren-F Silverstone 1982 N Lauda Aut McLaren-F Brands Hatch 1983 A Prost Fr Renault Silverstone 1984 N Lauda Aut McLaren-Tag Brands Hatch 1985 A Prost Fr McLaren-Tag Silverstone 1986 N Mansell GB Williams-H Brands Hatch 1987 N Mansell GB Williams-H Silverstone 1988 A Senna Brz McLaren-H Silverstone 1989 A Prost Fr McLaren-H Silverstone Friday's official practice times: mins secs 1 A Senna Brz McLaren 1:08.071 2 G Berger Aut McLaren 1:08.246 3 N Mansell GB Ferrari 1:08.336 4 R Patrese It Williams 1:08.677 5 T Boutsen Bel Williams 1:09.102 6 A Prost Fr Ferrari 1:09.110 7 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 1:09.147 8 A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1:09.243 9 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 1:09.560 10 N Piquet Brz Benetton 1:09.684 11 A Nannini It Benetton 1:09.782 12 S Nakajima Jap Tyrrell 1:09.937 13 A Caffi It Arrows 1:10.480 14 D Warwick GB Lotus-Lamb 1:10.552 15 P Martini It Minardi 1:10.568 16 I Capelli It Leyton H 1:10.691 17 M Donnelly GB Lotus-Lamb 1:10.786 18 S Modena It Brabham 1:11.070 19 M Gugelmin Brz Leyton H 1:11.167 20 E Pirro It Dallara 1:11.413 21 P Barilla It Minardi 1:11.498 22 M Alboreto It Arrows 1:11.562 23 A De Cesaris It Dallara 1:11.705 24 D Brabham Aus Brabham 1:11.741 25 N Larini It Ligier 1:11.942 26 O Grouillard Fr Osella 1:12.179 27 P Alliot Fr Ligier 1:12.483 28 G Tarquini It AGS-Ford 1:12.506 29 JJ Lehto Fin Onyx 1:12.712 30 G Foitek Swi Onyx 1:13.413 PRE-QUALIFYING result from Silverstone: mins secs 1 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 1:10.254 2 A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1:11.128 3 G Tarquini It AGS-Ford 1:11.516 4 O Grouillard Fr Osella 1:11.953 NON-QUALIFIERS 5 R Moreno Brz Eurobrun 1:12.554 6 Y Dalmas Fr AGS-Ford 1:12.653 7 C Langes It Eurobrun 1:15.059 8 B Gachot Bel Coloni 1:19.230 9 B Giacomelli It Life 1:25.947Eurobrun, Coloni and Life must continue pre-qualifying for all 1990 Grands Prix. Those three teams failed to get any car into formal qualifying for Sunday's race at Silverstone, removing a chance of scoring points and trying to win "automatic" qualification. AGS, Ligier, Dallara and Osella may also face pre-qualifying if they do not score points at Silverstone on Sunday. Pre-qualifying is necessary because 35 cars enter for every Grand Prix but only 30 can take part in practice; only 26 are allowed to start a race.
McLaren duo Ayrton Senna and Gerhard Berger edged Nigel Mansell off the provisional front row for Sunday's race. Brazilian Senna's smooth fastest lap of 1 min 8.071 secs came two-thirds of the way through the one-hour session and was never bettered, although Austrian Berger tried hard near the end. Local hero Nigel Mansell was third; he was over half a second quicker than Ferrari teammate Prost, but said his engine seemed less powerful than the Frenchman's. "I have less wing yet I'm slower down the straights - look at the speeds," he said.
Heroes of first official practice were the Larrousse Lola-Lamborghinis. They dominated pre-qualifying and began and finished the main session in the top 10. Japan's Aguri Suzuki was eighth quickest in only his ninth GP; French teammate Eric Bernard was next up. Fourth and fifth were the consistently quick Williams-Renaults, with Riccardo Patrese - in his record 200th GP - just ahead of Thierry Boutsen. French Tyrrell star Jean Alesi ended up seventh, the quickest Pirelli-shod car, despite being blocked on his quick lap.
Ivan Capelli and Mauricio Gugelmin came down to earth with a bump after their heroics at Paul Ricard in the first official practice at Silverstone. Capelli, a shock second to Alain Prost last weekend, had a best of 1 min 10.691 secs to take 16th. His Brazilian Leyton House Judd teammate could only manage 18th with 1:11.167. Derek Warwick was the better placed of the two British Lotus drivers in 14th, with Martin Donnelly 17th. Australia's David Brabham made good use of his local knowledge to finish 24th.
Reigning world champion Alain Prost blamed Friday's disappointing showing on his Ferrari's basic lack of speed. His car was around 4 or 5kph slower than the McLarens under acceleration rising to 10kph flat out, Prost said after claiming sixth in the first official practice session. Ivan Capelli, the star of Paul Ricard, was disappointed with his 16th place. "Our car is bouncing too much at the moment - we didn't get the same balance of downforce as we had last week."
Ferrari are hopeful of persuading Nigel Mansell to stay with the team for the 1991 season. Mansell has yet to win a race this season, and there has been talk of a return to his old team, Williams. Ferrari spokesman Franco Liistro said discussions were on-going with Mansell and team-mate Alain Prost and they hoped both would agree to stay. "Ferrari want Nigel. We hope Nigel wants Ferrari. I think we are confident that he will stay with us," he said.
F3:- Mika Hakkinen is set to continue his battle with fellow Finn Mika Salo at the season's most prestigious meeting. The Marlboro Ralt-Mugen driver's three wins leave him in second place going into round ten of the 17-race British F3 Championship, 7 points behind Salo. West Surrey Racing's Christian Fittipaldi won his first Championship race at Donington two weeks ago, leading from start to finish. Holland's Peter Kox has climbed to fourth, three points behind Briton Steve Robertson after two second places.
BRITISH F3 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS: (after round nine at Donington): 1 M Salo Fin 62 points 2 M Hakkinen Fin 55 3 S Robertson 27 4 P Kox Bel 24 5 C Fittipaldi Brz 20 6 P Warwick 10 7 D Higgins 9 8 J McGall 8 9 P Stewart 7 10 M Tanaka Jap 6 (GB unless stated)METRO CHALLENGE:- BDRC Metro Challenge cars come under the spotlight on Saturday afternoon with Peter Baldwin, Nigel Edwards and Tom Wood battling to hold on to their Championship placings. Touring car racer and ex-Rover works driver Jeff Allam goes in a celebrity car.
TOURING CARS:- Round six of the Esso British Touring Car Championship sees the drivers visit Silverstone for the second time this season. Current overall and Class B leader Frank Sytner is again likely to be battling it out with Class A men Rob Gravett and Andy Rouse.
F.VAUXHALL LOTUS:- The GM Lotus Euroseries circuit has seen most of the top drivers in the British Formula Vauxhall Lotus Series gaining European experience this season. David Coulthard and Vincenzo Sospiri are likely to come under challenge from current Euroseries champions - the Jan Lammers-owned Team Lotus Nederland, running Marcel Albers and Andre Ribeiro. Rising Italian stars Ruben Barrichello and Jose Luis di Palma may also figure.
COUPE DE FRANCE:- The Coupe de France 309 Peugeot Esso Race, immediately afterwards, features super-fast modified hatchbacks.
13.07.90 - F1:- THE BRITISH GRAND PRIX Final qualifying times: mins secs 1 N Mansell GB Ferrari 1:07.428 2 A Senna Brz McLaren 1:08.071 3 G Berger Aut McLaren 1:08.246 4 T Boutsen Bel Williams 1:08.291 5 A Prost Fr Ferrari 1:08.336 6 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 1:08.370 7 R Patrese It Williams 1:08.677 8 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 1:09.003 9 A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1:09.243 10 I Capelli It Leyton H 1:09.308 11 N Piquet Brz Benetton 1:09.407 12 S Nakajima Jap Tyrrell 1:09.608 13 A Nannini It Benetton 1:09.641 14 M Donnelly GB Lotus 1:09.741 15 M Gugelmin Brz Leyton H 1:10.044 16 D Warwick GB Lotus 1:10.092 17 A Caffi It Arrows 1:10.110 18 P Martini It Minardi 1:10.303 19 E Pirro It Dallara 1:10.847 20 N Larini It Ligier 1:11.187 21 P Alliot Fr Ligier 1:11.215 22 A De Cesaris It Dallara 1:11.234 23 P Barilla It Minardi 1:11.387 24 M Alboreto It Arrows 1:11.562 25 S Modena It Brabham 1:11.600 26 G Tarquini It AGS-Ford 1:11.681 NQ O Grouillard Fr Osella 1:11.710 NQ D Brabham Aus Brabham 1:11.741 NQ JJ Lehto Fin Onyx 1:12.631 NQ G Foitek Swi Onyx 1:13.271Nigel Mansell thrilled an already large home crowd by scorching to the third fastest lap in Silverstone history to take pole position for Sunday's F1 race. Mansell clocked 1 min 07.428 secs to leapfrog easily over Ayrton Senna (1:08.071), who like McLaren teammate Gerhard Berger, failed to improve.
"I did it for our country," said an emotional Nigel Mansell after claiming pole in front of a sun-soaked crowd. He said the lap had been the high point of his 1990 season and one of the best moments of his entire career. "I nearly jumped out of my car on my slowing down lap when I saw the time I set," he said. And he withdrew comments he made after Friday's practice when he said his car had been down on power compared to that of team-mate Alain Prost. "My pole spot is thanks to the power plant behind me - in one word, Ferrari," he said.
World champion Alain Prost, Mansell's Ferrari teammate who has won the last two GPs and also won here last year, was fastest in free practice but could only improve to 1:08.336 and will start fifth on the third row of the grid.
Nigel Mansell took pole position for Sunday's big F1 race but Jean Alesi also impressed again in his Tyrrell. The 26-year-old Frenchman, who lives in Oxford, was second quickest in free practice and then improved again to qualify sixth in 1 min 08.370 secs. Thierry Boutsen moved up to fourth fastest while Williams team-mate Riccardo Patrese will start his 200th GP seventh on the grid. Ivan Capelli, the star of Paul Ricard, improved six places to 10th, while Leyton House team-mate Mauricio Gugelmin also rose - to 15th.
It was a mixed final practice for Lotus with Martin Donnelly moving up to 14th but Derek Warwick improving very little and ending up on the eighth row. The French Ligier duo both made the grid, giving them a chance to avoid having to pre-qualify later this year. Both Onyx cars again failed to qualify but biggest disappointment was the failure of Australian David Brabham to make the cut - his Brabham was 28th. Teammate Stefano Modena had his best time discounted because his tyres infringed practice rules; he will now start from the final row.
COUPE DE FRANCE 309 PEUGEOT ESSO - Rd 6 First Qualifying Practice times: mins seconds P Gonin Fr 1:48.38 P Bourdais Fr 1:48.39 J Lallier Fr 1:49.09 G Dillman Fr 1:49.36 D Delestre Fr 1:49.39 C Bonnal Fr 1:49.43Surprise provisional pole sitter is Patrick Gonin, who helped keep Jean Lallier - winner here last year - at bay. The fastest of just two Britons in the race is Chris Longman, whose Peugeot UK-entered car is 12th.
GM LOTUS EUROSERIES - Round 5 of 11 First Qualifying Practice times: mins secs 1 V Sospiri It 1:34.49 2 R Barrichello It 1:34.51 3 G de Ferran Brz 1:34.77 4 D Coulthard GB 1:34.81 5 D Castro Santos Por 1:35.84 6 P Lamy Por 1:35.01Championship leader Vincenzo Sospiri claimed provisional pole as all of the top six bettered Gil de Ferran's old lap record of 1:35.02. Italian Marcel Albers, second overall, finished ninth. David Coulthard lies sixth overall.
BRDC METRO CHALLENGE - Round 10 of 14 Final practice times: mins secs 1 P Baldwin GB 1:54.50 2 N Edwards GB 1:55.02 3 T Wood GB 1:55.95 4 S Wilson GB 1:56.16 5 M Jones GB 1:56.40 6 R Cutting GB 1:56.78Peter Baldwin, runner-up in the '88 and '89 Metro series, comfortably took pole ahead of this year's championship leader Nigel Edwards. Tom Wood, second in last weekend's Castle Combe race, is on the second row with Steve Wilson's Hooper Motorsports entry.
BRITISH TOURING CARS - Round 6 of 13 First Qualifying Practice times:mins secs 1 R Gravett GB Ford RS500 1:34.96 2 T Harvey GB Ford RS500 1:35.83 3 M Newman GB Ford RS500 1:36.22 4 A Rouse GB Ford RS500 1:36.49 5 L Bristow GB Ford RS500 1:38.37 6 G Goode GB Ford RS500 1:38.57Robb Gravett, current Group A leader and second overall in the Championship, looks set for his fourth pole position of the season after a superb lap during the first session. Kurt Luby (BMW M3) led the Group B class, ninth overall.
F3:- Mika Hakkinen and Mika Salo enjoyed a tremendous tussle for the all-important pole spot during final qualifying for Saturday's F3 race at Silverstone. The flying Finns traded fastest laps in the closing minutes with Salo just getting the edge as he tore around the sun-soaked circuit in 1 min 30.22 secs in his Alan Docking Racing Ralt Mugen. Hakkinen was just 600ths of a second slower with Briton Steve Robertson, bidding for a second victory in the series this season at Silverstone, moving up into third place.
Final qualifying times: mins secs 1 M Salo Fin 1:30.22 2 M Hakkinen Fin 1:30.28 3 S Robertson GB 1:30.72 4 P Stewart GB 1:30.74 5 P Adams Bel 1:30.85 6 P Kox Hol 1:30.91 7 H Noda Jap 1:30.93 8 C Fittipaldi Brz 1:30.94 9 M Tanaka Jap 1:31.17 10 J Gene Sp Reynard 1:31.36 11 J McGall GB 1:31.43 12 J Westwood GB 1:31.52 (driving Ralts unless stated)McLAREN BRITISH DRIVER COMPETITION:- Former GP stars John Watson and James Hunt are among six judges helping in a search for a promising British driver. Finalists in a competition, being run for a second year by Autosport and McLaren, will undergo a tough test of their driving and physical ability for a prize of œ20,000 and promotional help.
14.07.90 K & N FILTERS RALLY, Carmarthen. Leaderboard after 10 of 16 stages (the final six take place on Sunday): mins secs 1 Lloyd/Gronow Metro 6R4 71:56 2 Pritchard/Handley Metro 6R4 73:03 3 MacAleenan/Murphy Toyota 73:11 4 Kitney/McCann Darrian T90 73:19 5 Mercer/Cook Renault 5T 74:03 6 Hollis/Davies Darrian T9 74:30 7 Barrow/Barrow Sierra 76:00 8 Oates/Long Escort RS 76:48 9 Hendy/Boulton Escort RS 76:51 10 Price/Davis Sierra Cos 77:23Most of the competitors complained of discomfort from the heat after just six stages of the two-day event. Among the early retirements were John Price on stage 3 and Gwndaf Evans. Evans after clutch failure, Chris Griffiths with oil pump failure and Graham Cole with a blown head gasket. Geoff Kitney, second after stage 6, was struggling with handling problems on his new Darrian T90. Serious electrical trouble left Dave Appleby well off the pace in his Metro 6R4 by early afternoon.
Final result after 16 stages: hrs mins secs 1 Lloyd/Gronow Metro 6R4 2:37.43 2 Kitney/McCann Darrian T90 2:40.49 3 Mercer/Cook Renault 5T 2:43.06 4 Appleby/Milton Metro 6R4 2:44.33 5 Hollis/Davies Darrian T9 2:45.29 6 Hendy/Boulton Escort RS 2:48.38 7 Oates/Long Escort RS 2:48.44 8 Barrow/Barrow Sierra 2:50.03 9 Powell/Morgan Rover SD1 2:51.36 10 Price/Reid Vaux Nova 2:52.58 EARS/Motoring News Championship, round 4 of 7 F1:- THE BRITISH GRAND PRIX Result of 1990 Foster's British Grand Prix at Silverstone - 64 laps of 2.97 mile circuit: 1 A Prost Fr Ferrari 1h 18m 30.999s / Average 145.804mph 2 T Boutsen Bel Williams 3 A Senna Brz McLaren 4 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 5 N Piquet Brz Benetton 6 A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1 lap down Fastest lap: Mansell, Ferrari, 1:11.291 Average 149.977 mph. New F1 Silverstone lap record. WORLD FORMULA ONE DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP Standings after round eight of 16: 1 A Prost Fr Ferrari 41 points 2 A Senna Brz McLaren 39 3 G Berger Aut McLaren 25 4 N Piquet Brz Benetton 18 5 T Boutsen Bel Williams 17 6 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 13 = N Mansell GB Ferrari 13 8 R Patrese It Williams 10 9 A Nannini It Benetton 7 10 I Capelli It Leyton H 6 11 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 4 12 A Caffi It Arrows 2 = S Modena It Brabham 2 14 D Warwick GB Lotus 1 = S Nakajima Jap Tyrrell 1 = A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1 WORLD FORMULA ONE CONSTRUCTORS TABLE Standings after the British GP: 1 McLaren-Honda 64 points 2 Ferrari 54 3 Williams-Renault 27 4 Benetton-Ford 25 5 Tyrrell-Ford 14 6 Leyton House-Judd 6 7 Larrousse/Lola-Lamb 5 8 Arrows-Ford 2 = Brabham-Judd 2 10 Lotus-Lamborghini 1Defending world champion Alain Prost made it three wins out of three to move ahead of arch rival Ayrton Senna in the race for the Formula One drivers' title. Prost, winner here last year and starting from fifth on the grid, drove yet another masterful tactical race to win by a massive 39.092-secs margin.
Nigel Mansell, fastest in qualifying, was locked in an epic struggle for the lead with both McLarens early on. But, after the ever-patient Frenchman had passed him on lap 43, Mansell's bid to regain his lead was again scuppered by mechanical failure.
Experienced Belgian Thierry Boutsen celebrated the birth of his first son Kevin earlier this week by claiming a surprise second behind Alain Prost. Boutsen had qualified fourth fastest in his Williams but more attention had focussed on his veteran teammate Riccardo Patrese, who was starting his 200th Grand Prix. In the event Patrese retired on lap 28, while Boutsen was the beneficiary of Silverstone's high casualty rate. He was passed more than once but held his line well to finish an admittedly distant second and take six points.
Brilliant Brazilian Ayrton Senna showed his new-found F1 maturity by snatching a valuable four points out of the fire for the second week running. Senna, starting second on the grid alongside Nigel Mansell, scorched past the Briton on the first bend but soon lost that lead and span off on lap 14. He rejoined the race well outside the top 10 but gradually worked his way back up the field. It paid dividends with third place as teammate Gerhard Berger, Ivan Capelli and Nigel Mansell dropped out.
Ivan Capelli was one of the stars of the show for the second time in a week. The surprise packet of the French GP had led Leyton House to their best ever GP showing of second place there and threatened to upset the odds again. Starting 10th on the grid, he scorched to new lap records on laps 36 and 37 on his way up to third place. A cracked fuel rail ended his challenge on lap 49 but the Milanese youngster had shown Paul Ricard was no fluke. Teammate Mauricio Gugelmin failed to start when his fuel pump drive sheared.
Eric Bernard and Aguri Suzuki ended a superb first half of the season for their Lola-Lamborghini team on the perfect note at Silverstone. Bernard recorded a best lap of 1 min 13.088 secs to finish fourth behind world champion Alain Prost - his previous best finish had been sixth. Suzuki improved on his best of tenth by four places to notch his first GP point. Ligier's Nicola Larini (10th) and Philippe Alliot (13th) now take the Lolas' places in the pre-qualifying stakes for the rest of the season.
Benetton's former world champion Nelson Piquet continued his revival with an excellent fifth place after alternator problems had forced him to start on the back row of the grid. He had qualified 11th fastest. Lotus-Lamborghini pair Derek Warwick and Martin Donnelly completed a dismal picture for Britain when they were forced to retire with blown engines on laps 46 and 48 respectively.
Alain Prost becomes the first non-McLaren driver to lead the drivers' championship since the end of 1987 following his record 43rd GP win. Alain Prost strengthened his grip on drivers' world championship after his Ferrari had beaten McLaren for the third GP in succession. He had qualified 5th, and Prost was the first to pay tribute to his team's improved reliability, saying: "The car was fantastic today. I thought Nigel was going to lead from the start. His car seemed stronger than mine but he was easy to catch and pass."
"Silverstone is very dangerous. If the changes weren't made, in five years the cars would be going flat out through the corners - and that would be stupid," Prost added.
Nigel Mansell announced his retirement from Grand Prix racing at the end of this season after gearbox failure had forced him out of this year's race. Mansell came to Silverstone on the back of two wins and two second places in the last five GPs in Britain - and he claimed pole position on the grid. He swapped the lead with McLaren duo Ayrton Senna and Gerhard Berger on five separate occasions over the first 28 laps. But his Ferrari ultimately could not respond to Alain Prost's challenge.
Nigel Mansell insisted his retirement from Grand Prix racing at the end of this year had not been a snap decision. Mansell was forced out just nine laps from the end of Sunday's showpiece F1 race at Silverstone by the latest in a catalogue of mechanical disasters. He said: "I've come to the point in my life where I've been doing a lot of thinking this past month. This is not an emotional response to today's activities. I can assure you it is not. The timing is perfect. This is the British Grand Prix," Mansell added.
Nigel Mansell said it was a sweet moment for him to announce he was quitting the F1 scene at Silverstone - scene of many a past triumph. "I'll be giving 100 per cent for the rest of the year and helping Alain (Prost) to win the world championship. I'm looking forward to putting my family first for the first time in my life. I've no animosity with anyone. This has been going on for about six months now. I will drive in the next eight races but Adelaide will be my last race."
Nigel Mansell denied his decision to quit had been the result of him reaching breaking point with his team. Teammate Alain Prost won the race to go top of the world championship standings but it was Mansell who again stole the headlines. "I am very thrilled for Ferrari. Everything has been very friendly. Hell I am 37 now and I want to quit while I'm at the top. I'm very calm and collected at the moment. I am not going to burst into tears. Now I hope to go ahead and become a successful businessman."
Thirty-seven-year-old Nigel Mansell has competed in 140 Grands Prix, driving for three teams over 10 seasons. His first F1 race was Austria in 1980 for Lotus but it was in a Williams Honda in 1985 that he first won a GP, the European at Brands Hatch. He quickly followed that with a string of successes in the Williams, ending with a fiercely-contested second place in the 1987 world championship. For 1989 he joined Ferrari, winning in Brazil and Hungary; this year his car has been dogged by mechanical failure, with only three finishes in eight races .
BRITISH F3 CHAMPIONSHIP, Round 10 of 17 Result after 15 laps: mins secs 1 M Salo Fin Ralt 22:54.98 (116.64mph) 2 M Hakkinen Fin Ralt 23:02.04 3 S Robertson GB Ralt 23:06.14 4 P Adams Bel Ralt 23:07.85 5 M Tanaka Jap Ralt 23:10.24 6 C Fittipaldi Brz Ralt 23:11.30 Fastest lap: Salo 1 min 30.90 secs (117.62mph)Mika Salo extended his F3 championship lead with a faultless flag-to-flag victory over fellow-Finn Mika Hakkinen. "It was a good win - and we had no problems in practice" said Salo. Paul Stewart's challenge ended on lap two when he spun his Ralt at Becketts making the best battle one between Minoru Tanaka of Japan, who fought off Brazil's Christian Fittipaldi for fifth. The first seven home drove Ralts, and top class B runner was Charles Rickett, whose Racing For Europe Ralt-VW finished 13th overall.
BRITISH F3 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after round 10 at Silverstone): 1 M Salo Fin 72 points 2 M Hakkinen Fin 61 3 S Robertson 31 4 P Kox Bel 24 5 C Fittipaldi Brz 21 6 P Warwick 10 7 D Higgins 9 8 J McGall 8 = M Tanaka Jap 8 10 P Stewart 7 (GB unless stated) BRDC METRO CHALLENGE - Round 10 of 14 Result after 10 laps: Mins:Secs 1 P Baldwin GB 19:15.96 2 T Wood GB 19:23.07 3 N Edwards GB 19:23.10 4 R Cutting GB 19:33.40 5 M Jones GB 19:41.60 6 J Allam GB 19:41.78 Lap record: Baldwin 1:54.48 - 93.39mph Overall standings: 1 N Edwards GB 84 points 2 P Baldwin GB * 77 3 T Wood GB 77 4 R Cutting GB 53 (* More race wins)Peter Baldwin narrowed the gap on BDRC Metro Challenge leader Nigel Edwards with a convincing win and a new lap record of 1 min 54.48 secs. Baldwin, runner-up in the '88 and '89 series, started from pole and never looked like losing that advantage. The highlight was a terrific tussle between Edwards and Tom Wood, who swapped second place throughout before Wood finally edged out his rival by a mere 0.03 secs on the final straight. Baldwin moves up to second, seven points behind Edwards.
COUPE DE FRANCE 309 PEUGEOT ESSO - Rd 6 Final qualifying times: mins seconds J Lagniez Fr 1:47.57 P Gonin Fr 1:47.63 J Lallier Fr 1:48.08 P Bourdais Fr 1:48.39 D Delestre Fr 1:48.79 C Bonnal Fr 1:48.84Jean Lagniez won pole with a one second improvement on Friday; championship leader Jean Lallier also improved but could only manage third on the grid. Patrick Bourdais did not better his Friday time after a spate of turbo and oil problems hampered Saturday practice.
GM LOTUS EUROSERIES - Round 5 of 11 Final qualifying times: mins secs 1 D Castro Santos Por 1:34.10 2 R Barrichello It 1:34.25 3 D Coulthard GB 1:34.25 4 V Sospiri It 1:34.49 5 G de Ferran Brz 1:34.49 6 K Brack Swe 1:34.54Diogo Castro Santos stole pole in the dying minutes of practice, beating the trio who had dominated the session and moving championship leader Vincenzo Sospiri to the outside of row two. Most cars suffered problems with new mandatory catalytic exhausts.
ESSO BRITISH TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP Round 6 of 13 - Final qualifying times: mins secs 1 A Rouse GB Ford RS500 1:34.67 2 R Gravett GB Ford RS500 1:34.96 3 T Harvey GB Ford RS500 1:35.83 4 G Goode GB Ford RS500 1:35.84 5 M Newman GB Ford RS500 1:36.22 6 L Bristow GB Ford RS500 1:36.74Andy Rouse snatched pole from Class A leader Rob Gravett who led after the first qualifying session but could not improve. Graham Goode moved up from sixth to fourth. John Cleland (1:42.09) led the Class B drivers, 10th overall, as Kurt Luby dropped to 11th.
15.07.90 GM LOTUS EUROSERIES - Round 5 of 11 Result after 16 laps: mins secs 1 R Barrichello Brz 25:20.53 2 D Castro Santos Por 25:22.79 3 B Dolan Irl 25:25.00 4 G de Ferran Brz 25:26.22 5 K Brack Swe 25:37.01 6 V Lopez Sp 25:39.19 F/lap, Barrichello: 1:34.15s/113.56 mph Standings: 1 R Barrichello Brz 58 points 2 V Sospiri It 50 3 G de Ferran Brz 48 4 M Alders NL 47Brazil's Ruben Barrichello took the championship lead after a flag-to-flag win and fastest lap at Silverstone. His Opel-engined car stormed ahead, resisting a late charge by Portugal's Diogo Castro Santos. The duel between Vincenzo Sospiri and Scotland's David Coulthard failed to materialise after a first lap clash saw the Italian lose his nose cone and fall to last place following a pit stop. Coulthard kept running in ninth but spun out at Becketts on lap 13, leaving him equal seventh in the championship.
COUPE DE FRANCE 309 PEUGEOT ESSO Round Six result after 12 laps: mins secs 1 P Gonin Fr 21:44.27 2 JC Lompech Fr 21:44.51 3 J Lallier Fr 21:49.67 4 P Bourdais Fr 21:59.31 5 L Rozentvaig Fr 22:05.78 6 P Trucco Fr 22:05.95 F/L: Lagniez 1 min 47.39secs (99.56mph) Standings: 1 J Lallier 155 points 2 P Trucco 142 3 L Rozentvaig 126 4 P Bourdais 121Patrick Gonin drove a near perfect race to just hold off Jean-Claude Lagniez and claim victory in round six of the Coupe de France Peugeot 309 Esso series. Gonin overtook Lagniez, who had followed his round five success at Le Mans by taking pole here, on the very first corner at Copse. He led for the remaining 11.5 laps but never by as much a second and came home in front by a mere 0.24 secs. Jean Lallier increased his overall lead by finishing third; Patrick Trucco made up a lot of ground to take fifth place. Richard Longman was top Briton in 13th.
ESSO BRITISH TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP Round 6 of 13 - Result after 15 laps: mins secs 1 R Gravett GB Ford RS500 24:36.90 average 108.59mph 2 A Rouse GB Ford RS500 24.40.10 3 T Harvey GB Ford RS500 24:45.79 4 L Bristow GB Ford RS500 24:48.10 5 G Goode GB Ford RS500 24:54.37 6 M Smith GB Ford RS500 25:05.65 Fastest lap: Gravett 1:37.00/110.22mph Class A Standings: 1 R Gravett GB 103 points 2 A Rouse GB 86 3 L Bristow GB 62 4 T Harvey GB 49Panel beaters again had the best deal from the Esso Touring Car championship after Rob Gravett's Sierra RS500 took a characteristically robust victory. Gravett and title race rival Andy Rouse made contact at the Woodcote chicane as they fought out a race-long battle for the lead in their near-identical cars. Championship contender Sean Walker had oil problems just two laps from the end denying him a likely fifth place. Rally ace Jimmy McRae, in a Group B BMW M3, finished a lap down after a detour at Woodcote. Group winner was Kurt Luby whose similar BMW was seventh overall.
22.07.90SPORSTSCARS AT DIJON, FRANCE:- Sauber Mercedes continued to dominate the World Sports Prototype Championship finishing 1-2 in round five at Dijon. Jean-Louis Schlesser, the current world champion, and Mauro Baldi took the flag just 3.8 seconds clear of team-mates Jochen Mass and Michael Schumacher as many teams struggled with intense heat. Nissan, never in a position to bid for the lead, won a fierce battle with the Silk Cut Jaguars to avenge their defeat by the British team at Le Mans. The Jaguars suffered handling problems and loss of grip to finish 4th and 5th.
Lack of grip left the Silk Cut Jaguars struggling as Sauber Mercedes powered to their fourth success in five rounds of the World Sports Prototype series. Driver Alain Ferte explained: "At the start of each stint the car was perfect but after about five laps, there was no grip at all." Toyota started well but both factory cars went out with engine failure before the 10th lap. Kenny Acheson in a Nissan hit barriers after skidding on oil left by one of Toyotas but recovered to finish third.
Britain's Spice Engineering team earned valuable points after finishing sixth despite being involved in a multiple accident even before the race started. Harald Grohs appeared to jump the gun and the resulting accident saw the Richard Lloyd Porsche fly over the Spice into the barriers, with four other cars involved. The race was stopped for 20 minutes while the wreckage was cleared. Mercedes now have 36 points with Jaguar on 22, Nissan 12 and Spice 9. Schlesser Baldi and Mass share the drivers' lead.
WORLD SPORTSCAR DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP Result from Dijon: (127 laps) hr mins secs 1 Schlesser/Baldi Mercedes 2:39:03.6 2 Mass/Schumacher Mercedes 2:39:07.5 3 Bailey/Blundell Nissan 126 laps 4 Lammers/Wallace Jaguar XJR 125 laps 5 Brundle/Ferti Jaguar XJR 125 laps 6 Taylor/Salazar Spice-Ford 124 laps 7 Wollek/Jelinski Porsche 962 124 laps 8 Palmer/Hobbs Porsche 962 122 laps 9 Ricci/Pescarolo Porsche 962 121 laps 10 Fabre/Robert Porsche 121 laps WORLD SPORTSCAR DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP Drivers standings after fourth round: 1 J Mass Mercedes 27 pts = J Schlesser Mercedes 27 = M Baldi Mercedes 27 4 K Wendlinger Jaguar 13 TEAMS: 1 Mercedes 36 pts 2 Jaguar 22 3 Nissan 12 4 Spice 9INTERSERIE CUP:- Austrian Walter Lechner won both heats of the German Interserie Cup in his turbo Porsche 962 but was pushed all the way in the second race by Briton Dave Coyne, in an Argo Cosworth. Richard Piper took runner-up spot in the first race in the Le Mans C2 class winning Spice SE89.
SPA 24 HRS:- Belgian driver Guy Renard was killed in a 24-hour endurance race for touring cars at Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium when his Toyota Corolla was hit by other cars after crashing into railings. The 27-year-old bachelor lived nearby in Malmedy. No other drivers were hurt.
F3000:- The European F3000 Championship reaches the mid-season point with the sixth round taking place today in Enna, Sicily. Britain's Damon Hill, driving a Lola, will be in pole position after driving the fastest qualifying session lap. Eddie Irvine will be in fourth position.
TOURING CARS:- Tim Harvey and Sweden's Slim Borgudd clinched victory in the Esso RAC British Touring Car Championship at Brands in a Ford Sierra after Rob Gravett and Mike Smith's first place was excluded because of an oversize fuel tank.
23.07.90INDYCAR:- Al Unser Jnr in a Lola Chevrolet won Sunday's Molson-Indy race in Toronto. Michael Andretti, son of former F1 world champion Mario, was second with ex-F1 driver Eddie Cheever third and Andretti Snr fifth.
HISTORIC FESTIVAL:- John Surtees, the former world champion, will drive the only surviving D-type GP Auto Union car during next weekend's Christie's International Historic Festival at Silverstone. The German built car, expected to fetch over œ3.5 million at auction in California, was the last to win a GP before the Second World War - in Belgrade on September 3, 1939.
SPORTSCARS:- Keke Rosberg of Finland, a former F1 World Champion, has agreed to come out of retirement to drive for Peugeot in the World Sportscar Championship.
26.07.90 - F1:- THE GERMAN GRAND PRIXJOHN WATSON ON THE GERMAN GRAND PRIX
'Grunt' used to be the secret to success at Hockenheim, the principal power circuit in the GP calendar. McLaren, looking to re-establish themselves as a winning team, will be pinning their hopes on the grunt factor. But it has dawned on McLaren that they are no longer in a position to enjoy the power advantage of the Honda engine due to the aerodynamic shortcomings of the car. They have been testing at Hockenheim and Silverstone to remedy the problem, working flat-out to recover the ground they appear to have lost since Mexico.
Ferrari are on a roll and, in spite of Nigel Mansell's shock news of his planned retirement, remain the dominant team in Formula One at present. Hockenheim may not suit the Ferraris as well as Silverstone did but the car is currently so good in every way and, with success in the last three races, it will be very difficult to beat them. If anyone does, it should be McLaren. Alain Prost has established himself at Ferrari in such a way that he has organised everything he needs to ensure his continuing success...but there is definitely no favouritism here.
Ferrari have made no conscious or unconscious decision to favour Alain Prost but the Frenchman has managed to manipulate things to his advantage. Nigel Mansell is suffering as a result but only because the Mansell jigsaw is simply not fitting together at present. A key piece seems to be missing but whether his planned retirement will help him find it, I really cannot say. I have a great deal of respect for the decision he has taken although I wonder if we have really seen the end of the Mansell saga. His unique character and driving approach will be greatly missed.
Benetton looked very impressive during testing at Hockenheim and will be waiting to pick up the pieces from the inevitable Ferrari v McLaren scrap. Williams will also be standing by but everyone else will certainly be totally outpowered and will have to try a more tactical approach to Sunday's race. Hockenheim, as we have said before, is a race about reliability. It is hard on engines and the retirement rate is high - the hot spell will make things worse. There is no way to compete with the Honda, Ferrari or Renault engines here except to drive sensitively and finish.
Jean Alesi looks the most likely candidate for Nigel Mansell's place in the Ferrari team, if he manages to get out of his agreement with Tyrrell. There is no obvious replacement for Alesi but a move to Tyrrell would be a tempting one for most drivers. Tyrrell, with a Honda engine and Pirelli tyres, could be a real winner in 1991. Williams still want exclusivity of the Renault engine but may have to agree to take on a French driver in return. Meanwhile Ivan Capelli is on the top of many shopping lists after two stunning races. Motor racing is so fickle...
THE GERMAN G.P.
Brazilian Ayrton Senna scorched round the Hockenheim circuit in his McLaren in 1 min 40.198 secs breaking Keke Rosberg's lap record of 1:42.013. Teammate Gerhard Berger drove with equal brilliance just over two tenths of a second slower. The session was held up when Alessandro Nannini was involved in a big shunt in his Benetton on the third chicane but the Italian walked away unscathed. Jean Alessi was in trouble when the engine of his Tyrrell blew up but he managed to clock the sixth fastest time.
Pre-qualifying times Hockenheim: mins secs 1 P Alliot Fr Ligier 1:45.514 2 N Larini It Ligier 1:46.186 3 O Grouillard Fr Osella 1:46.828 4 Y Dalmas Fr AGS-Ford 1:47.125 *************************************** NON-QUALIFIERS 5 G Tarquini It AGS-Ford 1:48.127 6 R Moreno Brz Eurobrun 1:48.983 7 B Gachot Bel Coloni 1:50.460 8 C Langes It Eurobrun 1:50.897 9 B Giacomelli It Life 2:10.786 Friday's qualifying times: mins secs 1 A Senna Brz McLaren 1:40.198 2 G Berger Aut McLaren 1:40.434 3 A Prost Fr Ferrari 1:41.732 4 N Mansell GB Ferrari 1:42.314 5 N Piquet Brz Benetton 1:42.726 6 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 1:43.255 7 A Nannini It Benetton 1:43.594 8 T Boutsen Bel Williams 1:43.620 9 R Patrese It Williams 1:43.736 10 S Nakajima Jap Tyrrell 1:44.873 11 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 1:44.998 12 I Capelli It Leyton H 1:45.025 13 D Warwick GB Lotus-Lamb 1:45.364 14 A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1:45.382 15 S Modena It Brabham 1:45.547 16 P Martini It Minardi 1:45.735 17 M Alboreto It Arrows 1:45.871 18 D Brabham Aus Brabham 1:46.110 19 A Caffi It Arrows 1:46.201 20 P Alliot Fr Ligier 1:46.596 21 E Pirro It Dallara 1:46.904 22 N Larini It Ligier 1:47.068 23 G Foitek Swi Onyx 1:47.209 24 O Grouillard Fr Osella 1:47.429 25 M Donnelly GB Lotus-Lamb 1:47.723 26 P Barilla It Minardi 1:47.747 NON-QUALIFIERS 27 Y Dalmas Fr AGS-Ford 1:47.789 28 A De Cesaris It Dallara 1:48.118 29 JJ Lehto Fin Onyx 1:48.856 30 M Gugelmin Brz Leyton H -:--.--- 27.07.90 - F1:- THE GERMAN GRAND PRIXBrilliant Brazilian Ayrton Senna failed to improve on his new Hockenheim lap record of 1 min 40.198 secs but still claimed pole for Sunday's F1 race. McLaren teammate Gerhard Berger starts alongside him even though he could not better Friday's mark of 1:40.434. The two McLarens remained over a second faster than their nearest rivals - the two Ferraris of Alain Prost and Nigel Mansell, while both Williams improved - to fifth and sixth on the grid. Mauricio Gugelmin qualified in 14th place in his Leyton House Judd after failing to post a time on Friday.
Final qualifying times: mins secs 1 A Senna Brz McLaren 1:40.198 2 G Berger Aut McLaren 1:40.434 3 A Prost Fr Ferrari 1:41.732 4 N Mansell GB Ferrari 1:42.057 5 R Patrese It Williams 1:42.195 6 T Boutsen Bel Williams 1:42.380 7 N Piquet Brz Benetton 1:42.872 8 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 1:43.255 9 A Nannini It Benetton 1:43.594 10 I Capelli It Leyton H 1:44.349 11 A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1:44.363 12 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 1:44.496 13 S Nakajima Jap Tyrrell 1:44.650 14 M Gugelmin Brz Leyton H 1:45.193 15 P Martini It Minardi 1:45.237 16 D Warwick GB Lotus-Lamb 1:45.244 17 S Modena It Brabham 1:45.547 18 A Caffi It Arrows 1:45.604 19 M Alboreto It Arrows 1:45.755 20 M Donnelly GB Lotus-Lamb 1:45.790 21 D Brabham Aus Brabham 1:46.110 22 N Larini It Ligier 1:46.187 23 E Pirro It Dallara 1:46.506 24 P Alliot Fr Ligier 1:46.596 25 JJ Lehto Fin Onyx 1:46.857 26 G Foitek Swi Onyx 1:47.209 NON-QUALIFIERS 27 O Grou'ard Fr Osella 1:47.429 28 P Barilla It Minardi 1:47.747 29 Y Dalmas Fr AGS-Ford 1:47.789 30 A DeCesaris It Dallara 1:48.032 28.07.90 - F1:- THE GERMAN GRAND PRIX Result after 45 laps at Hockenheim: 1 A Senna Brz McLaren (1hr 20mins 47.164secs, 141.155mph) 2 A Nannini It Benetton 6.520secs 3 G Berger Aut McLaren 8.553 4 A Prost Fr Ferrari 45.270 5 R Patrese It Williams 48.028 6 T Boutsen Bel Williams 1:21.491 7 I Capelli It Leyton H 1 lap 8 D Warwick GB Lotus-Lamb 1 lap 9 A Caffi It Arrows 1 lap 10 N Larini It Ligier 2 laps 11 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 5 laps Fastest lap: Boutsen 1 mins 45.602 secs (144.01mph)Ayrton Senna ended arch rival Alain Prost's run of three wins with a crushing win at Hockenheim to move back ahead in the race for the drivers crown. The brilliant Brazilian drove a textbook race, biding his time before striking decisively. Senna led off from the 47th pole of his career until he came into the pits for impressive tyre change on lap 18. Alessandro Nannini took the lead in his Benetton but he did not have the power to respond when Senna used the back markers on lap 34 to scorch past.
Ayrton Senna again showed the growing maturity which this season has been so much a part of his bid to recapture the Formula One drivers' crown. Senna scorched to his fourth win of the season to turn a two-point deficit into a four-point lead over Alain Prost. "The heat made it very difficult to maintain performance on our soft tyres. That's why we both came in. When I tried to get past Nannini, I lost power. So I decided to wait. I knew he'd have problems later on because he was on the same tyres. It worked good," Senna observed wryly.
Alessandro Nannini was the star of another good day for the Benetton team in their second race with the new Ford V8 engine. The 31-year-old Italian, who was handed victory when Ayrton Senna was sensationally disqualified at Suzuka last year, led for 16 laps of the 45 and finished second to the Brazilian. Benetton's gamble on sticking with the harder compound Goodyear-B tyres could have paid even greater dividends but for former world champion Nelson Piquet's misfortune when his engine blew up with him lying third on lap 24.
Another chapter was added to the catalogue of disasters that have plagued Nigel Mansell's season when the Briton spun off on lap 15 at Hockenheim. It was the sixth time in nine races this year that the Ferrari man has failed to finish - and it could have been little consolation that this time it was in no way down to his car. Mansell had given notice of his enduring determination after his shock retirement announcement at Silverstone by going third fastest in the warm-up. But all his effort was to no avail when he seemed to make a routine error.
Philippe Alliot was disqualified after his Ligier shunted into Italian Emanuele Pirro's Dallara at the start. It took some time to remove Pirro from his car and he was taken to hospital but suffered no more than a neck strain. Only 11 of the 26 starters finished. Austrian Gerhard Berger completed a much better weekend for McLaren by finishing third. "I didn't have the best engine today, so I'm quite happy," he said. McLaren now lead Ferrari by 20 points in the Constructors Championship Ferrari's reigning world champion Alain Prost was a long way back in fourth.
WORLD FORMULA ONE CONSTRUCTORS TABLE Standings after nine rounds of 16: 1 McLaren-Honda 77 points 2 Ferrari 57 3 Benetton-Ford 33 4 Williams-Renault 28 5 Tyrrell-Ford 14 6 Leyton House-Judd 6 7 Larousse-Lamborghini 5 8 Brabham-Judd 2 = Arrows-Ford 2 10 Lotus-Lamborghini 1 Next round: Hungary, August 12 WORLD FORMULA ONE DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP Standings after German Grand Prix: 1 A Senna Brz McLaren 48 pts 2 A Prost Fr Ferrari 44 3 G Berger Aut McLaren 29 4 N Piquet Brz Benetton 18 = T Boutsen Bel Williams 18 6 J Alesi Fr Tyrrell 13 = N Mansell GB Ferrari 13 = A Nannini It Benetton 13 9 R Patrese It Williams 12 10 I Capelli It Leyton H 6 11 E Bernard Fr Lola-Lamb 4 12 A Caffi It Arrows 2 = S Modena It Brabham 2 14 D Warwick GB Lotus 1 = S Nakajima Jap Tyrrell 1 = A Suzuki Jap Lola-Lamb 1WEEKEND OF 28/29 JULY 1990
RALLY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, Argentina
Spaniard Carlos Sainz escaped unhurt after overturning his Toyota on a mountain road during the second leg. He was pushing hard when the accident occurred, having cut leader Massimo Biasion's advantage to only one second. Despite the crash, he and co-driver Luis Moya still managed to finish the leg to Cordoba in second place, 2 mins 10 secs in arrears. Biaison's Lancia team-mate Juha Kankkunen, third after the first stage, had to drop out with a broken gearbox.
Reigning world champion Massimo Biasion of Italy has won the Argentine Rally in his Lancia Delta ahead of Spain's Carlos Sainz in a Toyota. France's Didier Auriol, also in a Lancia, finished third having recovered from the engine trouble which dogged him on Wednesday.
BRITISH MIDLAND ULSTER RALLY Standings after 9 of 21 stages: mins secs 1 Llewellin/Short Toyota Celica 53.35 2 Wilson/Grist Sierra Cos 54.30 3 McRae/Ringer Sierra Cos 54.57 4 Middleton/Shaw BMW M3 55.54 5 Eriksson/Jo'sson Peugeot 309 56.09 6 Metcalfe/Gr'rod Vaux Nova 56.11 7 Fisher/Kennedy BMW M3 56.14 8 Smyth/Reid Sierra Cos 56.45 9 Cullen/Morgan Sierra Cos 56.54 10 Evans/Davies Sierra Cos 57.01 SHELL OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS after four rounds: 1 D Llewellin Toyota Celica GT-4 75pts 2 C McRae Sierra Cosworth 47 3 M Wilson Sapphire Cosworth 42 4 G Evans Sapphire Cosworth 30 5 H Eriksson Peugeot 309 GTI 25Championship leader David Llewellin suffered a scare on the seventh stage when his Toyota Celica slid off the road and punctured a rear wheel. Colin McRae was held up by a puncture on the first stage, and spun at the same corner as Llewellin on stage seven to drop to third place overall. Ireland's Austin McHale retired his BMW with a broken differential.
BRITISH MIDLAND ULSTER RALLY Result after 21 stages hr mins secs 1 Llewellin/Short Toyota C'ca 2:56.56 2 Fisher/Kennedy BMW M3 2:59.03 3 Middleton/Shaw BMW M3 3:03.20 4 Cullen/Morgan Sierra Cos 3:04 53 5 Metcalfe/Gr'rod Vaux Nova 3:05 05 6 Finlay/Wilson Sierra Cos 3:06.34 7 Evans/Davies Sierra Cos 3:10.05 8 McRae/Ringer Sierra Cos 3:11.27 9 Rimmer/Hardie BMW M3 3:11.35 10 Wood/Paterson Sierra Cos 3:14.18David Llewellin retained the Shell Open Championship after winning the British Midland Ulster Rally ahead of local hero Bertie Fisher. The Welshman had lost the advantage on the day's opening stage when his Toyota Celica had a puncture. But Malcolm Wilson's misfortune left the Open Championship leader in command of the race, and he never looked back as he sealed his second title in a row. Welshman Gwyndaf Evans wrapped up the Group N title by finishing seventh overall in his Ford Sapphire. Colin McRae finished eighth after a puncture.
David Llewellin said it was a "dream come true" to win the Shell series for an unprecendented fourth successive time. The 30-year-old Welshman made sure of his record fourth title when he won the Ulster Rally in Belfast. The result means that Llewellin retained his title with two rounds of championship still remaining. He had led throughout the two-day event except for a brief spell on the second day when Cumbria's Malcolm Wilson took over.
SHELL OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS after five rounds: 1 D Llewellin Toyota Celica GT-4 95pts 2 C McRae Sierra Cosworth 50 3 M Wilson Sapphire Cosworth 42 4 G Evans Sapphire Cosworth 34 5 H Eriksson Peugeot 309 GTI 25 6 R Brookes Sierra Cosworth 22HISTORIC FESTIVAL:- Silverstone's Grand Prix circuit will be used for the last time before being re-developed in this weekend's Historic Festival meeting featuring 12 races. The highlight will be Sunday's FIA European Challenge race for historic touring cars, and there will also be a demonstration by the only Auto Union 3-litre D-Type left in the world before it is sent to the US for sale.
F.RENAULT :- Britain's Adrian Cottrell in a Reynard FR90/Renault was fastest in unofficial practice on Friday clocking 55.23 secs in the eigth round of the Formula Renault UK Championships. Norfolk racer Jason Plato set provisional pole during testing for Sunday's Formula Renault clash at Snetterton with a time of 1m 13.9s.
F.FORD :-Talkland Formula Forward Championship leaders Mark Goddard and Andrew Guye-Johnson traded times before setting new record 46.9-second laps in the final testing session for Sunday's Evening Standard Free Car Raceday at Brands Hatch.
F3000:- Former Formula One driver Divina Galica returns to single seaters after racing 1000hp trucks in Europe. Britain's Damon Hill in a Ford Cosworth Lola is in pole position for Saturday's F3000 race at Hockenheim after clocking 1 minute, 56.146 seconds, just one tenth ahead of Italy's Marco Apicella.
Ulsterman Eddie Irvine in a Reynard 90 won the F3000 race at Hockenheim on Saturday in 58 minutes, 14.604 seconds. Italy's Marco Apicella, also in a Reynard, was just five seconds behind with France's Jean-Marc Gounon in third. Britain's Damon Hill started on pole but spun off on the second lap.
TOURING CAR:- Rob Gravett and Mike Smith have been reinstated as winners of last Sunday's Brands Hatch round of the Esso Touring Car Championship. Class B winners Frank Sytner and Kurt Luby have also had their disqualifications quashed. Both teams were found to have oversize fuel tanks but the RSA has ruled they were wrongly measured. Gravett returns to the top of the points table.
RALLYCROSS:- Former Grand Prix driver Gary Brabham is to compete in the Nova Rallycross Challenge at Swindon on Sunday.